STYLISH waiting rooms at Leamington rail station were revealed yesterday as part of a £200,000 makeover merging the old with the new.

The 1930s lounges have been restored to their former glory with art deco doors, lighting and mirrors but modern arrival and departure screens and fully equipped CCTV cameras have also been introduced.

Chiltern Railways spearheaded the project with Friends of Leamington station, a group of rail users who raised £5,000 to pay for art work in the waiting rooms.

Toilets, benches and staff rooms were also refurbished.

Other funds came from The Railway Heritage Trust, Network Rail and the Department for Transport.

Mary and Colin Hawkins, of Whitnash, Leamington, began courting in the waiting lounges back in the 1960s and were delighted with the much-needed revival.

The couple, who have a grandson, have been married for 43 years.

Colin, an engine tester, aged 62, said: “We don’t get the train very often now but when we were teenagers we would catch the train from Leamington to Snow Hill station every Friday night and spend our dates out there.

“The waiting lounge looks wonderful – it’s been brought back to life – it brings back some memories for us. It used to be very busy and there were lots of porters around.

“The last time we came to the station was three years ago – we’re on our way to Manchester for a two-day trip. We thought we would treat ourselves.”

Archie Pitts, chairman for Friends of Leamington station, said: “Chiltern Railways encouraged us to set up the group six years ago and since then we’ve been raising money to restore parts of the station.

“We had a lot of involvement in restoring the waiting rooms, making sure the floors were buffed and getting the copies of adverts from the Network Rail Museum and putting them up. I’m impressed with the way it’s turned out.”

Ian Baxter, customer services director for Chiltern Railways, said: “The waiting rooms were a little bit jaded and we wanted to preserve the heritage and also make it usable for the passengers of today.”

Despite the waiting rooms being targeted by vandals in the past, Mr Baxter is determined to continue with making improvements to the station.

He added: “We had a Western Railway table restored and placed in the waiting room but within three hours it was gouged by a minority and regrettably we decided to take it away.

"We hope people do respect this room. We can’t protect ourselves from vandals but we won’t stop improving things because of them.”